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Vol. 146, No. 3, 2008 Free Abstract Original Paper Complement Split Products C3a and C4a Are Early Markers of Acute Lyme Disease in Tick Bite Patients in the United States Ritchie C. Shoemaker, Patricia C. Giclas, Chris Crowder, Dennis House, M. Michael Glovsky a Center for Research on Biotoxin Associated Illnesses, Pocomoke, Md., b Pediatrics Department, Allergy and Immunology Division, National Jewish Medical and Research Center and NJC Clinical Reference Laboratories, Denver, Colo., c Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of California Irvine, Irvine, Calif., and d Department of Immunology, Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute, San Juan Capistrano, Calif., USA Address of Corresponding Author Int Arch Allergy Immunol 2008;146:255-261 (DOI: 10.1159/000116362) Abstract Background: Current laboratory markers do not readily detect acute Lyme disease. We assessed the utility of complement and its split products as markers of Lyme disease in patients shortly after a tick bite. Methods: Thirty-one consecutive acute Lyme disease patients, 14 with and 17 without erythema migrans (EM) skin rash, seen by a physician within 96 h of a tick bite were matched with 24 consecutive tick bite patients without Lyme disease symptoms and 46 healthy control subjects. Complement and split products measured included factor B, Bb, C4, C3c, C3ades Arg, C4ades Arg, C1q- and C3d-containing immune complexes, and C2. Results: C2, C4, C3 and factor B levels were within normal ranges in all groups. C3a and C4a levels were significantly higher in acute Lyme disease patients than in tick bite and healthy control groups (both p < 0.001). All acute Lyme disease patients, regardless of EM, had elevated levels of C3a or C4a. Few tick bite controls had elevated levels of C3a (2/20) or C4a (5/24) and only 1 of the healthy control subjects had elevated C3a (0/46) or C4a (1/32). Conclusions: These findings suggest that C3a and C4a may be useful markers of Lyme disease in patients seen shortly after tick bite, even in those without EM. Copyright © 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel Author Contacts Correspondence to: Dr. Michael Glovsky 960 East Green Street Pasadena, CA 91106 (USA) Tel. +1 626 793 6680, Fax +1 626 793 0664 E-Mail yksvolg@caltech.edu goto top of page Article Information This study was presented in abstract form at the 27th Symposium of the Collegium Internationale Allergologicum, Malta, May, 2006. Received: December 7, 2006 Accepted after revision: November 20, 2007 Published online: February 13, 200 [cave note: A well known llmd in CA has been doing that test, collecting data.] |
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